Combined overflow tube and flushing valve



Dec. 13, 1949 i J. c. owENs 2,491,131

COMBINED QvERFLow TUBE AND FLusHmG VALVE Filed March 27, -1947 2 sheets-sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

A rrofe/VEY J. C. OWENS COMBINED OVERFLOW TUBE ND FLUSHING VALVE Filed March 27, 1947 2 shawls-sheet 2 JEJJ'E C. OWEN:

A fraz/ve' V Patented Dec. 13 1949 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE COMBINED OVERFLOW-TUBE AND FLUSHING VALVE Jesse C. Gwens, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application March ,27, 1947, Serial No. 737,657

4 Claims.

provide kan `in'lproved operating assembly for a ilush tank which includes a novel combined iiush Valve and safety overflow.

Another purpose is the provision ofsuch valve assemblies which are Vparticularly adapted to eliminate the gurgling, hissing, or sucking sounds caused by breaking of the water current by sudden inrush of air.'

A further object is the provision of a pivotally mounted overflow iineoperatively'connected with the present valve assembly.

Still another purpose is the provision of a selfactuating syphon Ain operative association with my' novelvalve system;

An additional object is the provision of a plurality ofwater lines adapted to supply the reservoir tank and also tooperate successively a flushing and reiill operationof the toilet bowl, allv of which operations are operatively correlated in the desired sequence of my present mechanism.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and claims, the novelty vconsisting in the features of construction, combination of parts, the unique relations of the members and the relative proportioning, disposition, and operation thereof, all as more completely outlined herein and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings which form part of the present specication:

Figure 1 is a rear elevational view in section, of my combined overflow tube and flush valve.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken through the head of the supply valve assembly.

Figure 3 is a-topplan View of a portion of the lower pivotal mounting of the overflow pipe,`r

taken along the line 3 3 of Figure 1.

yFigure 4` is a horizontal sectional view through a tank refill line associated with the valve assembly, taken along the line 4 4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a rear elevational View, partly in section, of a modied form of overow pipe which maybe used with my valve assembly.

Figure l6 is a bottom plan view of the butterliy valve-of Athe overow pipe as seen along the line B--B of Figure 5.

Figure '7 isan enlarged detail view of a portion of the valve of Figure 6.

As" illustrated, there is provided a reservoir tank l of conventional shape and volume, the top I2 and' bottom ld'beng shown `in part. A water supply line I6 enters the tank through a suitable packing gland I8, and bears on its upper extremity a bowl-shaped lflan-ge ZB'disposed at suitable elevation below the top l2 ofthe tank. An oppositely curvedcover 22 is rigidly securedl to the bowl 2li as by screws 24, the intersection between the complementary parts being rendered airtight by an annular gasket 2G.

The chamber 28 formed between bowl 2U and cover 22 has three water outlets, two of which supply water to the tank -I0 and thethird to the toilet bowl (not shown) The principal delivery pipe 30 to the tank extends downwards from the under face of the bowl 20, being in communication with the chamber 28 through a pair of oppositely arranged angularly disposed channels 32 and 34 (Figure 4) drilled or otherwise formed in the body' of the bowl 2B. This construction is designed to avoid the gurgling sounds caused by air breakage of the Iwater'line which are so objectionable in common flush valves. A secondary delivery pipe 3E for the tank has its intake channel '38 disposed higher than the bowl chamber 28, soy that water iiows through it only when the chamber is full of water under pressure from the supply line 16.

- The control chamber cover 22 is provided with two pairs 4tY and 2 vof diametrically aligned lugs disposed at opposite sides of its outer edge, each pair of lugs having pivotally mounted therebetween a vertically swingable leverarin it and 16, both of which are swingable in the same `plane and pointed in the saine direction. The two lever grinst@ and :it are interconnected by a vertical link [i8 'connecting their respective ends intermediate the two pairs of lugs and preferably materially closer to the pair li'2lthan to the pair 40. The longer lever arm 'f,Y which is thus fulcrumed on lugs 42; carries a hollow sphere or ball iioat 5201i itsouter end. The shorter lever arm 4A is somewhat upwardlybowed over the valve cover 22-and is connected intermediate its ends to a vertically reciprocating piston 5t for a purpose presently evident.

Medially located on the upper face of the cover 22 is an upstanding annular boss 52 which is vertically apertured to guide the piston 54 therein. The piston' 54 normally extends into the chamber Zitv and has attached thereto a dependent rod 56 of lesser diameter, which rod carries on its lower end a plunger valve 5B, recprocable in a recess 59 of the bowl 2li upon movement of the piston. An annular valve seat is provided within the recessf, aconven-ien-tfmanner of vforming the valve seat lfbeing by arrangingv the parts so that-the upper end of the water supply line I6 projects through the bottom of the recess 59 and for a slight distance above the plane of the upper surface of the bottom of the recess. The annular recess 59 is of larger diameter than the plunger valve 56, with the result that when the valve 5S is lifted oi its seat 5l, water thus permitted to enter the bottom of the recess 59 from the supply line I6 can pass upwardly around the valve 58 and, after traversing the vertical length of the recess 59, enter the chamber 28.

However, loosely mounted upon the rod 56, just above the valve 58, is a disc 60, preferably of rubber or similar material, the diameter of which is greater than that of the plunger valve 58, but slightly less than the inside diameter of the recess 59. Consequently, after water has passed the valve seat 51 and flows upwardly around the valve 58, it impinges against the disc 60, carrying it upwards on the rod 56.

Also loosely mounted upon the rod 56 and above the disc 68 is a second disc 6I, also preferably of rubber or similar material; but this disc is of materially greater diameter than the recess 59, with the result that it normally rests upon the rim 62 of the recess 59. A series of openings 63 spaced about the center of the disc 52 are effectively closed by the smaller disc 60 when the latter is forced upwardly into engagement with the under surface of the disc 62 by upward motion of water within the recess 59, and both discs 69 and 62 thereafter will be forced upwardly until the upper, larger disc 82 engages the under surface of the bowl cover 22 in position to close a plurality of openings 64 provided in the cover 22.

However, when the valve 58 is seated, closing oi the ilow of water into the chamber 29, both discs 6I] and 62 will fall by gravity to the respective positions thereof illustrated in Figure 2, opening the chamber 28 to the atmosphere through the aperture 64 and thereby precluding any possibility of the partial Vacuum therein which would be necessary were the valve to develop any siphonic action resulting from loss of pressure within the supply line I6. In this manner, all possibility for contaminated water to be drawn back into the supply line I6 from either the toilet fixture or the storage tank I0 is precluded.

In the bottom of the reservoir tank there is provided the customary arrangement of flushing outlet for emptying the contents of the tank into the toilet (not shown). The outlet in this case comprises a vertical conduit 'I2 fixedly secured in the floor I4 of the tank by a suitable packing gland 'I4 and having a funnel-shaped mouth 76 disposed within the tank near the base thereof. An open-ended overflow pipe 'I8 is pivotally mounted across the funnel mouth so as when thus seated, to prevent water in the tank from running out the outlet conduit l2 except by passing through the overflow pipe, that is, by entering at the top of the latter. This mounting of the overflow conduit is attained by means of a horizontal flange 99 disposed about its bottom end and having an annular gasket retained against its under face so as to establish a substantially fluid tight seal between the low end of the overflow conduit 19 and the upper edge of the funnel mouth 16. A laterally projecting arm 84 extending outward from the upper face of the flange 8G has its outer end inserted between a pair of upstanding, parallel lugs 86 to which it is pivotally connected by a transverse pivot pin 88, the lugs being conveniently anchored by a threaded plug B9 inserted in an upturned pipe elbow 90 radiating from the base of the funnel.

Means are provided for manual actuation of the apparatus to unseat the overflow conduit 18 from the upper edge of the funnel mouth 16, and thereby permit water stored within the tank to escape therefrom through the conduit 12. The upper end of the overflow pipe T8 is pivotally connected at 92 to one end of a link 93, the other end of which is pivotally connected to the lower end of a lever 94. The upper end of the lever 94 is rigidly attached to a horizontally disposed shaft 96 which is rotatably journalled in such position in the front vertical wall of the tank that it extends above the valve cover 22 between the boss 52 and the lugs 42. Also rigidly secured to the shaft 96 is an operating handle 98 located outside the tank and an actuating key or nger Illu disposed within the tank. The finger is situated beneath and in vertical alignment with the piston-connected lever arm 44 and upon its upswing caused by rotation of the shaft 96 the moving finger is adapted to abut against and lift the lever 44 and thereupon lodge in a notch |82 cut in the lower edge of the arm 44, thus supporting the arm 44 in raised position.

In operation, the handle 98 is depressed, thereby causing the following three actions to occur: (l) by rotation of the lever 94, the overflow pipe i8 is unseated from the funnel mouth '59, thereby allowing the tank contents to escape through the flushing outlet l2; (2) by raising the lever 44 by the finger IDI), the ball oat 50 is forced below the level of the water stored within the tank; and 3) the plunger valve 58 is lifted from the supply line IG by the piston 54, thereby allowing water from the supply line I6 to enter the chamber 28 and to flow therefrom through the rell tube 'I9 to the well of the toilet bowl and through pipes 30 and 36 to the tank, but at a lesser rate than that at which water stored within the tank escapes through the flushing conduit l2. When the water drops below the level of the displaced ball float 50 (shown in broken lines in Figure 1), the float then falls further with the receding water, thereby further raising the bowed lever 44 and releasing the finger 99 from the notch |02. The depressed operating handle 98 will then swing back to its original position, due to the relatively greater weight of the overflow conduit '18, which also is restored to its seated position atop the funnel mouth '56, thus terminating the flushing operation. The well of the toilet bowl is now lled by water running through the tube 'I9 while the tank is lled by the pipes 30 and 38. As the water rises in the tank, it raises the float 59 so as to progressively cut off the water inlet I6 by depression of plunger valve 58. The capacity of the outlet 66 is such that the required quantity of water will be delivered to the toilet bowl during the time required to ll the tank I0 by the lines 39 and 36.

A modified construction is shown in Figure 5 wherein a siphon tube |04 disposed in the tank is formed with one of its legs IUG preferably straight and normally vertical, with its lower open end spaced somewhat above the bottom Illa of the tank. The other leg |08 of the Siphon tube H14 is curved to substantially semicircular or looped form. The lower extremity of the looped portion |88 is provided with an outer annular flange H9 retaining a rubber gasket IIZ on its lower face so as to seat upon the top edge of a funnel-shaped outlet, or flushing conduit ||4Y mounted inthe bottom. ofthe 'tankby suitable 'packingglandA H6 andV leading to the toilet bowl (not shown). The loop` and attachedv bottorn flange H are'pivotally mounted upon the outlet pipe H4 by a suitable pin H3v connecting the-outer edge of the flange with. a vertical lug H0 correspondingly mounted on a collar |20 rigid with the outlet pipe k| I4.

Within the lower, open end of the vertical Section |06 ofthe overow conduit |04 'there isl mounted anl inwardly opening, unidirectional buttery valve consisting of a flat discl |22 carried by 'a horizontally disposed pivot pin '|21 inserted across the pipe at onexside of the disc,

while the oppositeedge of the disc, when closed,

tion of theoverflow pipe |04 spaced Slightly above' the .lower end thereof. The function of the small pipe |24 is to conduct air from itslower end |23, virrimediately the latter has been uncovered by lowering of ythe'level of the water within the tank lea, and 4to=deliver the.-air to the upper portion of the Siphon tube and thereby break the Siphonic action'and thus terminate the flushing action.

A tipping lever |28 is attached at its upper end to the operating handle 98 by a shaft 95 journalled in the front wall of the tank. The lower end of the lever |28 is connected by a link |29, which is pivotally connected to a fixed, embracing collar |30 mounted on the lower portion of the vertical arm of the overilow conduit. The lever |28 has a weight |34 attached adjacent its lower end, so that upon the overflow conduit |04 being momentarily tipped over within the tank by downward movement of the handle 98 (and upward movement of the lever |28) the action of the weight |34 will restore the parts to their original positions upon release of the handle. It will be seen, however, that the effect of tipping the overflow pipe |04 is to close the butterfly valve |22 and cause the water thus held in the vertical arm to flow over into the loop |08 while at the same time water ows into the opposite or outlet end of the loop from the tank so that substantially the whole movable section of the overow channel |04 which is thus beneath the water level is thereby lled with water before escape of any appreciable volume of water down the outlet ||4 from the tank. AS a factor contributingr to this same end, it Should be noted that the cylindrical end of the loop, which is disposed in the outlet funnel, has its terminal edge disposed in a plane at approximately 45 to the axis of the pipe, with the longest protruding lip portion thereof |35 positioned symmetrically along the side of the loop adjacent the pivot Hd. Upon the loop being tipped back, such lip is thereby moved to a position extendingr 'across the outlet ||4, effectively limiting escape of water from the tank into the outlet and yet permitting entrance of water to the loop.

At this point, withdrawal of the operators hand from the handle 98 allows the lever weight |34 to drop the overflow loop to its original po sition in communication with the ushing conduit 4. The water now lling the loop flows but, due to'thesmall bore of the pipe |24, in Vsuch manner as.A again to avoid objectional gurgling inY the system;

The ballA oat` 50a is connected to the inlet valve 5dias-previously illustrated, `these parts being heref eliminated for greater clarity of illustration, the only other difference from the construction'of Figure 1 being that in the present modification 'the tube 1S, which supplies water to the bowlafter flushing, here enters the outlet .pipe' l |4 below the valve seat, as'indicated at |38.

It is thus evident that I have produced a highly effective arrangementy of parts for operating a flush tank and which is particularly useful in that"special provision made for breaking the waterflows at necessary' points without permitting appreciable back surge of waterand consequentg'urgling caused'fby the introduction of air.

While I have shown and described in some detail, presently preferred embodiments of my combined overnow'tube'andfflushV valve, it is to be 'understood that various modifications may be madefin the construction andoperation thereof within the scope of the Subsequently claimed invention which is to be construed broadly and limited only by the prior art.

I claim:

l. In flushing apparatus including a reservoir tank having an outlet, the combination of a Siphon tube pivotally mounted within said tank with its upper, medial portion normally disposed above the full water level within said tank and both its inlet end and its outlet end below said water level, said inlet end being open to the interior of said tank and said outlet end normally .in communication with said tank outlet, means for tilting said Siphon tube to lower said medial portion thereof to a position below said water level to effect filling the bore of said tube and Start flow of water into said outlet around said Siphon tubes outlet end whereby Siphonic action within said tube and withdrawing water from said tank iS initiated upon return of said Siphon tube to its normal position, and means for admitting air to said medial portion of said Siphon tube to interrupt siphonic action thereof prior to lowering of the water level within said tank to said inlet end of said Siphon tube.

2. In flushing apparatus including a reservoir tank having an outlet, the combination of a Siphon tube pivotally mounted within said tank with its upper, medial portion normally disposed above the full water level within said tank and both its inlet end and its outlet end below said water level, said inlet end being open to the interior of said tank and said outlet end normally in communication with said tank outlet, means for tilting said Siphon tube to lower said medial portion thereof to a position below said water level to effect filling the bore of said tube and start ow of water into Said outlet around Said Siphon tubes outlet end whereby siphonic action within Said tube and withdrawing water from Said tank is initiated upon return of said Siphon tube to its normal position, and a tube opening at one end into the interior of said medial portion of said siphon tube and at its other end into the interior of said tank outside said siphon tube and at a higher position than said inlet end of said siphon tube to admit air to said siphon tube and thereby interrupt siphonic action thereof prior to lowering of the Water level within said tank to said inlet end of said siphon tube.

3. In flushing apparatus including a reservoir tank having an outlet, the combination of a siphon tube pivotally mounted within said tank with its upper, medial portion normally disposed above the full water level within said tank and both its inlet end and its outlet end below said water level, said inlet end being open to the interior of said tank and said outlet end normally in communication with said tank outlet, means for tilting said siphon tube to lower said medial portion thereof to a position below said water level to eiect lling the bore of said tube and start ow of water into said outlet around said Siphon tubes outlet end whereby siphonic action Within said tube and withdrawing water from said tank is initiated upon return of said siphon tube to its normal position, and a unidirectional valve mounted adjacent said inlet end of said Siphon tube for restraining flow of water from said siphon tube back into said tank.

4. In flushing apparatus including a reservoir tank having an outlet, the combination of a siphone tube pivotally mounted within said tank with its upper, medial portion normally disposed above the full water level within said tank and both its inlet end and its outlet end below said water level, said inlet end being open to the interior of said tank and said outlet end normally in communication with said tank outlet, means for tilting said Siphon tube to lower said medial portion thereof to a position below said water level to eect lling the bore of said tube and start flow of water into said outlet around said Siphon tubes outlet end whereby siphonic action within said tube and withdrawing water from said tank is initiated upon return of said Siphon tube to its normal position, and means for restraining now of water from said siphon tube back into said tank.

JESSE C. OWENS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PA IE N IS (1st addition to NO. 373,940) 

